


Protected

by hermitpanda



Series: Homo Sapiens Mutata Trilogy [3]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: M/M, Shapeshifting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-17
Updated: 2017-03-17
Packaged: 2018-10-06 16:50:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10339647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hermitpanda/pseuds/hermitpanda
Summary: Hotch smiled. “I’ve seen him in action the day he protected me in the park from some dogs. If that’s how he protected me, I’d hate to be the person that went after Jack around him. I just hope we never have a reason to see that side of him.”





	

**Author's Note:**

> The last story in this trilogy is finally here! Wolfy Spencer's back in action with a sidekick! Hell yeah. Enjoy :D
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own Criminal Minds or the characters. Just borrowing them for a while.
> 
> Dialogue written in ** is telepathic and not spoken out loud.

Jack laughed as he chased after the large chestnut-colored wolf. Spencer had only been running again for a week since recovering from his injuries that had happened almost four months before, and after a few hours of pleading, puppy dog eyes, and pouting, the shifter had agreed to let Jack run with him every few days. The wolf put on a burst of speed and surged forward disappearing around a bend in the forest path. *Come on, Jack. I thought you wanted to run with me, not behind me.* He heard the taunting voice and made a face.

He heard rustling in the leaves to his left and slowed down. He knew that Spencer would stay on the path while they were running. There was too great a risk of Jack being injured or lost traipsing through the forest if he ventured away from the well-worn rut. *Spencer?* 

*I heard it, too.Don’t slow down, and don’t stop. Keep moving in this direction* Spencer skid to a stop and whirled to hurry back to his mate’s son. He growled when he saw the mountain lion peeking out of the trees. He recognized it as another shifter and burst forward to place himself between the other shifter and the boy he loved so much. There was a chance that it was Erin Strauss, but he couldn’t be sure from this distance. There were other shifters in the area that shifted into mountain lions. The mountain lion tilted its head as he sniffed at the air. He bowed his head in deference to the Section Chief when he recognized her scent.

*Jack, come back. It’s Erin. It’s okay.* Spencer sat and watched the mountain lion ease out of the trees. 

Jack walked up beside him and draped an arm across his shoulders. He smiled brightly at the shifter before them. “Hi, Miss Erin.” Her head bobbed in acknowledgment. She closed the distance between them and let the boy rub her head gently.

Spencer looked at the watch on Jack’s wrist. He nudged him. *We need to go or you won’t be ready to go when Jessica comes to pick you up. Tell Erin that I’ll see her at the office.* 

“We have to go now. Spencer says he’ll see you at the office.” Jack backed away from the mountain lion. She nodded again. Spencer nipped playfully at Jack’s hip and bounded down the path. “Bye Miss Erin!” He waved and hurried after the wolf.

~*~

“Spencer and Jack seemed happy with each other’s company this morning running.” Erin leaned against the doorframe of Hotch’s office.

The Unit Chief nodded and gestured her in. He waited until she had sat in one of his visitor's chairs before responding. “Spencer’s glad to be running again. He’s been running every morning this week and said that Jack can run with him a couple times a week. They both love it. I wasn’t aware that you ran in that park.”

“I normally don’t, but I wanted to see them together. They’re sweet. Has he moved in with you yet?” She crossed her legs.

“Not officially, no. But he’s with us more than he’s not. I know he has a couple months left on his lease, and I suspect that he might be waiting for that to move in with us. He knows the offer is there, though. Both Jack and I have told him that we want him to live with us.” He tapped his pen on his blotter.

She nodded. “I’m sure he will. He loves that boy. He didn’t recognize me right away. He was rather fierce. He sprinted at full speed and put himself between me and Jack.”

Hotch smiled. “I’ve seen him in action the day he protected me in the park from some dogs. If that’s how he protected me, I’d hate to be the person that went after Jack around him. I just hope we never have a reason to see that side of him.”

“I do too.”

They both turned when Garcia cleared her throat from the doorway. “Sorry to interrupt, sir, ma'am. We have a case. It’s local but a doozy.” She crossed the room and passed him the hard copy file to skim through to validate her decision.

Hotch nodded and passed the file back. “Round table in five.” They watched the tech analyst leave. He saw Strauss’s curiosity. “Someone has been threatening the children of police. They’ve kidnapped one now. I hate kidnappings.” He sighed.

“I do too. I’ll leave you to it.” She stood and left him alone to call Jessica to make arrangements for his sister-in-law to keep Jack until they finished with the case.

He grabbed his tablet and went to the conference room. When everyone had gathered, he gestured for Garcia to go over the case. He gave their assignments and everyone started moving to comply. “Do we need to be worried?” JJ looked at him, the fear in her eyes obvious. 

The Unit Chief blew out a breath. “I don’t know. God, I hope not. But we are law enforcement and working this case might attract attention to our own kids.” He rubbed his temples trying to ward off the headache that was brewing. *No, don’t. I can deal with it.* He scolded Spencer when he felt him trying to take on the pain himself. 

The younger man walked over to join them. “I think Will and Jessica should be called. So they at least know that there might be someone after the kids.” 

“Better safe than sorry.” JJ nodded and looked at Hotch hopefully.

“Fine. Yeah.” Hotch nodded. “I want the team to work from here as much as possible. I’m worried that we’ll attract attention if we spend too much time at the local precincts if they’re being watched.”

“I’ll call Jessica.” Reid left the conference room. He spoke to his mate’s sister-in-law for a few minutes before reaching out for his mate’s son over the bond. *Jack? What are you doing?*

*PE. We’re playing dodgeball. I’m already out for this round.* The boy’s voice sounded happy and light.

Spencer glanced at Aaron and wondered if he really should warn the boy to be careful. Better safe than sorry, he repeated JJ’s words. *We have a local case. There is an unsub kidnapping kids of law enforcement. Do not go with anyone that is not from our team, your aunt, or Erin. Got that? No one. I don’t care if they say they’re a cop or FBI. You do not go with them.*

*Got it.*

*Jack, I mean it.*

*I know. I promise I’ll stay safe, Spencer. Take care of Dad and stay safe.*

*Will do.* Spencer went back to the conference room. “I called Jessica and gave her a heads up.”

“Good, thank you.” Hotch nodded.

Reid stepped closer and gripped his lover’s arm. *I also warned Jack. I knew you wouldn’t like it, but I did it anyways. He’s a smart kid and will be on the lookout for anyone strange now. He’ll follow instructions.*

*We’ll discuss it later.* He gave him a glare but nodded. “I need you on the threats. The originals are being messengered over but in the meantime use the photocopies. I don’t think there’s enough data right now to even try a geographic profile.” 

“On it.” The doctor nodded and settled at the conference table with the notes.

~*~

“Spencer!” Hotch exclaimed when he read the message dropped off by courier. 

The younger man appeared in the door of the conference room. “Hotch?” He was confused by his lover’s use of his first name at the office. He never called him Spencer while they were working. His gut clenched when he saw the nondescript brown envelope in his hands. They hurried towards each other meeting on the catwalk. He carefully took the paper in his gloved hands. The graphically descriptive threat against Jack had him snarling. 

*Jack!* Aaron called over the bond.

*I’m okay, Dad. Just concentrate on your case.* The boy responded back.

Spencer strode back to the conference room where Prentiss and Rossi were watching them warily. He listened to his mate’s conversation with their son. “Jack’s been threatened. Aaron hasn’t said but I’m fairly certain that he’s going to send me to get him.” He placed the note on the table. He felt his lover’s presence at his back and turned just as Strauss hurried in.

“I heard about the courier. Who got the note? Who’s been threatened?” Her eyes searched the assembled group. They finally rested on the note. “Oh no. Aaron…”

“Spencer, I want you to go pick up Jack. Take him back to the house.” Aaron’s fists clenched. *Do whatever it takes to keep him safe.*

*Always.* Spencer nodded and ran to the bullpen to collect his bag.

Strauss laid a gentle hand on the Unit Chief’s arm. “I’m going with him. I’ll shift once I’ve reached your house. I’ll be able to inflict much more damage as a mountain lion.” She turned to follow Spencer out. 

Hotch’s voice stopped her. “Erin? Thank you.”

She nodded. “Of course.” She caught up with Spencer at the elevator. “Go check out one of the SUVs. I’ll meet you down there. I just have to collect a few things from my office before we leave.” A few minutes later, Spencer was careening out of the Quantico lot with the lights and sirens on. She clutched at the handle on the dash. “Is this why Agent Morgan refuses to let you drive in the field?”

“Morgan thinks I drive like a grandma.” Spencer shot through an intersection on a red light. “Of course, he’s never ridden with me when I’ve been on my way to protect my mate’s son from kidnappers.”

“I understand the need to get there quickly, but we also need to get there in one piece, Spencer,” she chastised lightly. She squeezed her eyes shut as he whipped around a corner.

“We will.” He skidded into the school’s parking lot and hurried into the office.

Erin had barely caught her breath by the time he was hustling Jack out to the SUV. She turned in her seat to pass him her cell phone and purse. “Here Jack. I’m going to shift when we get to the house so you will be in charge of my phone.”

He nodded and put it in his pocket before buckling himself into the backseat. The threat against him had subdued the vibrant boy, and it made Erin’s heartache for him. “Are you going to shift too, Spencer?”

Spencer nodded and pulled the SUV out of the school lot. “Yes. I’ll make sure you’re secured in the house and then I’ll shift. Erin and I will stay outside. We’ll be able to smell and hear someone coming sooner if we’re out there.” 

“Okay,” Jack said softly. 

“Jack, nothing’s going to happen to you. I promise.” Spencer reached one hand back to him. He squeezed the boy’s hand. 

Jack nodded. “I know, Spencer.”

Spencer pulled the SUV into Aaron’s driveway. He ushered Jack into the house without waiting for Erin to shift. He hurried him to his bedroom. “I want you to stay up here. I don’t want them to be able to see you moving around through the windows. If you need me, use the bond. If I tell you that someone’s gotten here, you need to call your dad using the phone so that it gets recorded in the system. Okay?”

Jack nodded and hugged him tightly. “Be careful.”

“I will. Don’t worry. I’m leaving you my revolver since I know you know how to use it. Last resort only.” Spencer kissed the top of Jack’s head before removing his holster from his belt to set on Jack’s desk. He stepped back from his lover’s son and shifted. *Stay away from the windows.* He commanded before bounding down the stairs and wiggling out the dog door Aaron had installed for him in the back door. Erin had positioned herself at the corner of the townhouse where she could watch the street without being spotted. Spencer crouched behind Aaron’s large grill, staring towards the woods that edged up to the back of the development.

~*~

*Aaron, they’re here. Six of them. Armed with handguns and knives. Coming from the woods.* 

Spencer’s voice over the bond spurred his mate into action. Hotch’s phone began ringing as he moved towards the conference room. “Hotchner.”

“Dad, there’s six people here.” Jack’s voice was nervous.

“Where are you at? Can you see anything?” Hotch gestured for the team to gather around him and put the call on speakerphone.

Everyone winced then there was the reverberating crack of a gunshot. “In my room. Spencer told me to stay away from the windows so I can’t see anything. Do you want me to look out?”

“No! Stay towards the inside walls of the house. We’re on our way.” Hotch hung up. He concentrated on preparing for what was to come. He couldn’t allow himself to be overcome with the fact that his lover was taking on six armed potential kidnappers that were focused on his son. He jumped into an SUV with Dave and Prentiss. Morgan and JJ following in the other. No one spoke as they made their way to the back of Aaron’s townhouse.

Spencer and Erin had managed to dispense with three of the attempted kidnappers. Their bodies were lying scattered around the yard. “Oh God,” JJ made a gagging noise when she saw that the first one had been relieved of his throat.

Hotch sprinted forward when they heard another gunshot followed by an animalistic scream. He stopped when he saw Spencer fling the fourth kidnapper away and rush to crouch protectively over to Erin. He could feel Spencer’s pain in his shoulder and knew that something had happened to injure the wolf. He raised his Glock and fired two shots at the man struggling to reach for one of the discarded handguns on the ground. Spencer leaped up to savagely maul the remaining the man.

*It was just those six.* Spencer collapsed back panting. He limped over to Aaron and nuzzled into his hip. 

Aaron holstered his gun and gestured for the others to follow suit. “Someone see to Erin.” He pointed at the mountain lion and knelt to run his hands over the bloody wolf. 

“Who the hell is that? Where’s Spencer?” Morgan stared at the wolf as Rossi and Prentiss hurried to Erin’s side. 

Jack shuffled out of the house with a large laundry basket overflowing with towels and first aid kits. “I started boiling water, Dad. If Miss Erin can’t shift, she can’t go to the hospital.” He dropped the basket and wrapped his arms around Spencer, burying his face in the wolf’s neck.

Spencer shifted to pull the boy into his lap and hug him close. He winced moving his left shoulder. One of the kidnappers carrying a knife had slid the blade into his shoulder, but it had missed any of his tendons. If it was kept clean, it would heal in a few days. “I’m okay, Jack.” He ignored the stares of his teammates. Aaron tossed a couple towels to Prentiss and Dave before pressing one against Spencer’s shoulder wound.

“Your clothes are ruined,” Emily said taking in the ripped and blood-stained garments.

Spencer glanced down at himself. “Didn’t have time to strip before shifting. I can walk someone through taking care of Erin’s wound.” 

Erin shifted underneath Emily’s hands pressing on the bullet wound in her thigh. She gritted her teeth. “If someone has steady enough hands to remove the bullet, I should be okay.”

“I can do it! Spencer’s been teaching me how.” Jack pulled away from Spencer and lunged at the basket.

His father’s hand on his shoulder stopped his rummaging through the first aid kits. “Hold on there, Dr. Dolittle. We need to get Erin and Spencer inside and keep everything as sterile as possible. You only get to do it if Erin says you can. I also need to call this in and get a crew out here.”

“Call my assistant. She’ll know who to call since it requires a special team.” Erin managed. 

“On it.” JJ pulled out her phone and moved towards the house.

Aaron pulled Spencer up. “You okay to walk in on your own?” At the shifter’s nod, he moved over to Strauss. “Morgan, help me carry her. Prentiss, grab the basket and take it inside. Rossi, get some water boiling. With two injuries to treat, we’ll need quite a bit. Jack, you know where Spencer’s medical kit is.”

Morgan stared after Spencer and Jack hurrying into the house together. “We’re not going to talk about Reid - “

The Unit Chief cut him off with a scowl. “Our priorities right now are to clean wounds and make sure that neither Spencer or Erin get infections in their wounds. Lift on three. One, two, three.”

They got the injured woman into the kitchen as Jack began laying out medical tools and supplies on the table under Spencer’s supervision. He was explaining to Dave and Emily his interest in becoming a doctor. “19.7 percent of the population of the DC metro area are shifters, but there are only four doctors who will treat them. None of them will treat them while shifted into their animal forms. I’m going to go to both medical school and vet school so I can. Papa’s been teaching me.” 

Aaron’s gaze connected with Spencer’s. The younger man shrugged his uninjured shoulder. *That’s the first time I’ve heard him call me that.*

*I don’t mind if you don’t mind.* Hotch and Morgan moved to place Erin on the bench of the breakfast nook after Prentiss pulled the table away and gestured them over. Emily leaned over and ripped the fabric of Erin’s slacks so that her wound could be tended.

“Using telepathy is rude when not everyone can hear you.” Erin gasped out. 

“Sorry. Who do you want to do this?” Hotch asked while Spencer directed Jack which tools to sterilize in the boiling water.

She sent Jack a soft smile. “I’m sure that Spencer’s been an excellent teacher and that Jack is quite capable.” She laughed when he grinned eagerly and rushed to the sink to wash his hands. 

Dave touched Derek and Emily’s shoulders. “Let’s go outside and leave them to this. We can help JJ handle the team that comes to clean up.” He knew that they all had questions for Spencer and Aaron, but they would have to wait until wounds had been tended, bodies had been removed, and everyone had calmed down. Confronting an emotional shifter was idiotic. Confronting an emotional shifter that had just ripped the throats out of multiple people attempting to harm a child he obviously loved dearly was suicide. He briefly clasped the Unit Chief’s shoulder before he ushered the two younger agents out of the house. “We’ll be outside if you need us, Hotch.” 

Hotch moved back to watch Spencer coach Jack through removing the bullet. He carefully cleaned the wound and placed a few neat stitches in her skin. “You can’t shift while you have stitches. Sorry, Miss Erin.” Jack looked at her.

“A very small sacrifice to make sure you’re safe.” She gently touched his cheek. He threw his arms around her after taking off his gloves. “Go take care of your papa’s shoulder, sweetheart.”

~*~

Spencer took a deep breath and nodded at Aaron to knock on Dave’s door. He smiled down at Jack when the boy looped his arms around him leaning into his side. The team had left the three of them to themselves for the past two days. He was sure that it was probably Erin’s or even Dave’s doing. He knew they wanted answers to their questions. Hopefully, they didn’t feel betrayed by his desire to keep his shifting abilities to himself.

Their host pulled open the door. “Come in. How’s the shoulder?” Dave eyed the sling that Spencer was wearing.

“Healing. Jack’s been very diligent about helping me keep it clean and infection-free. The sling is so I don’t pull the stitches out moving my arm.” He ruffled Jack’s hair before taking his hand to follow Dave into the living room. Aaron stood on the other side of him with his hand resting on his back. Jack leaned against him again. He knew what the Hotchners were doing. They were sending a silent message to the rest of the team that he was theirs.

“Would you like to clear the air before or during dinner? It’s your choice,” Dave said watching the trio. 

Spencer looked at the people he considered his family. They seemed relaxed, but he knew how good they all were at concealing their emotions. “Before. Then if we’re no longer welcome here, we can leave.”

“Spence… We don’t want you to go. We just want answers,” JJ spoke up quickly. “Will and Henry are in the den, Jack. If you want to go watch tv with them while we talk.”

“I’m staying with Papa,” Jack said quietly while looking around the group in silent challenge.

Dave gestured the trio to sit. He waited until they had sat on an empty sofa together before speaking. “I think I can speak for all of us when I say that our biggest concern is why didn’t you tell us?”

Spencer licked his lips nervously. “You all know that I was bullied growing up. I let everyone assume that it was because of my intelligence but that wasn’t the only reason. When people would find out that I was a shifter, they expected me to turn into something like a house cat. Someone once asked me if I turned into a chihuahua. They said it was fitting because I was small, annoying, and wouldn’t shut my mouth. When they would find out I was a wolf, a very large one at that, it became a game. Who could goad me into shifting? I just started keeping it a secret.” He looked around at them for signs that they were angry with him. When he didn’t see any, he continued. “I’m slow to trust. You’ve all become my family, but it wasn’t instant. By the time I felt I could trust each of you with the secret, I was worried that you’d hate me for keeping it from you, that you’d feel betrayed that I hadn’t confided in you.”

“How long have you known?” Prentiss looked at Hotch.

“When he wrenched his knee. At least, that’s what we told you he did. I was attacked by a pack of wild dogs when I was running. A wolf, that I found out later was Spencer, protected me but was injured in the process so I took him home. Jack and I tended his wounds and took care of him.” Hotch rubbed Spencer’s thigh gently where the fight with the dogs had torn away some of his flesh.

Jack giggled. “Spencer shifted in his sleep. He was naked. He told Dad to shoot him so he didn’t die of embarrassment.”

“What? How did you know that?” Spencer blushed.

“You fell or something. It woke me up. I only peeked into Dad’s room.” Jack muffled his laughter with his hands, but his eyes still sparkled.

Spencer grimaced and rubbed at his neck self-consciously. “We’re not going to discuss that. Ever. It was embarrassing and unintentional for Aaron to find out that way.”

“You were naked?” Morgan snickered.

“If I wear clothes when I shift, they tend to get dirty or even ripped. So I like shifting naked. Then I don’t have to worry about my clothes. I was clothed the other day because I didn’t take the time to undress. Jack’s safety was more important than the state of my clothing. We could move on to another question any time now.” Spencer avoided meeting anyone’s gazes.

Everyone laughed. “So you guys can talk telepathically? You’re mates?” Emily asked.

They nodded. “We don’t use it in the field after that one incident,” Aaron said.

“The telepathic thing is cool, but I think next time we have to chase an UnSub down, we should just turn loose Professor Lupin over there and let him have at it.” Morgan grinned.

Spencer rolled his eyes. “I am not a werewolf. I am a shifter, and besides the movie characterization of Lupin’s werewolf side looks nothing like me when I have shifted. If you’re going to insist on calling me by the name of a fictional wolf, I would prefer it to be Akela of Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book.”

“I was thinking Cujo might be more appropriate. Did you see what he did to them?” Prentiss made a face.

“Cujo was a dog, not a wolf! And I don’t have rabies!” Spencer exclaimed indignantly. “And they went after Jack. Even if he wasn’t my mate’s son, I would have done everything in my power to protect him.”

Dave laughed. “How about we postpone the debate over nicknames until over dessert? Dinner won’t keep forever.”

“So we’re all good?” Aaron asked looking at the group. Everyone nodded and stood up to make their way to the dining room. He rubbed Spencer’s back. *All that worrying for nothing.*

*I know, but I was scared.* He leaned into the gentle touch. *I’m glad they aren’t bothered by it, but I really hope they don’t call me Cujo.* They took their seats at the table as Dave brought out their dinners.

Henry studied them thoughtfully after he and Will were informed about Spencer’s abilities. “Since Uncle Spence is a wolf and we’re his family, does that make us a pack?”

Spencer grinned as everyone laughed. “Yeah, it kind of does.”

 


End file.
